Perforating-machine.



PATENTED FEB. 10, 1903.

J. WLHEDGEPETH.

1 PERFORATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 28, 1902..

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N0 MODEL.

Elm-720,425. iPATEITED FEB.10,1903.

J. W. HBDGEBETH. PERPORATING MACHINE..-

APPLICATION FILED JULY 28, 1902.

H0 MODEL 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNlTED STATES;

PATENT- OFFICE."

JOHN W. IIEDGEPETH, OF RIPLEY, TENNESSEE.

PERFORATlNG-MACHI NE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, $20,425, dated February 10, 1903.

Application filed July 28,1902.

T aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J oHiv W. HEDGEPETH, a: citizen of the United States, residing at Rip-, ley, in the county of Lauderdale and State of Tennessee, haveinvented a new and useful Perforating-Machine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines for perforating paper; and it has for its object to provide a machine of this class which shall possess superior advantages in point of simplicity, durability, and general efficiency.

A further objcctof the invention is to construct a perforating-machine comprising a plurality of needle-bars relatively adjustable, whereby by a single operation a sheet of paper may be punctured along different lines at right angles to each other.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in the improved construction, arrangement, and combination of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed outinthe claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View taken from one'of the rear corners of a machine constructed in accordance with myinvention. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 00 0c in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional View taken directly above the clearing-plates on the plane indicated by line y y in Fig. 3.

' Fig. 5 is a detail sectional View of the handle by means of which the machine is operated, showing the means by which the movement of said handle is limited.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are indicated by like numerals of reference.

The frame of my improved perforating-machine may be described as comprising a pair of uprights 1 1, suitably connected by cross bars or braces, as 2, and supporting the bed of the machine, which, taken as a whole, is"

designated 3. From thebed rise the vertical posts 4 4, one at each corner, upon which the vertically-movable frame 5 is supported. The sides of said frame are provided with downwardly-extending brackets 6, carrying vertically-adjustable downwardly-extending rods 7, which are screw-threaded at their upper ends and provided with clamping-nuts 8, bearing against the upper and under sides of Serial No. 117,365. (No modeLl the parts of the brackets through which the connecting-rods 7 extend, so that relative adjustment of the said parts may be had.that is, the brackets carrying the frame5 may be adjusted vertically upon the rods 7. The latter are guided through brackets 9 upon the outer sides of the uprights, and their lower ends are pivotally connected with cranks 10 upon the outer ends of a rock-shaft 11, which is mounted in the lower ends of the uprights 1 1. Springs 12, which are coiledupon the connecting-rods 7, bear at their'lower ends against the upper sides of the brackets 9 and at their upper ends against set collars 13, secured upon the said connecting-rods by means of screws 14 and by means of which the pressure in an upward direction of the springs 12 may be regulated. The means for vertically adjusting the frame 5 have already been described. The means for regulating the throw may consist of bolts 15 and 16, vertically adjustable in cross-bars 17 and 18 of the frame and limiting the movement in an upward and a downward direction of the treadle 19, which is secured to and extends forwardly from the rock-shaft 11. operating the treadle the frame 5 and its related parts ,may be forced downwardly toward the bed of the machine, while when the pressure. upon the treadle is released the springs 12 will force it in an upward direction to its normal raised position.

The frame 5 is composed of the end pieces 20-20, the front 21, and the rear piece 22, which are suitably framed and secured together if not cast or otherwise formed in one piece, which will'probably be the preferred construction.

The front and rear sides are connected intermediate their ends by a cross-bar 23, which is preferably secured at some distance from the center line of the frame. Another crossbar 24 is disposed slidingly between the front and rear sides of the frame, the said crossbar being provided at its ends with arms 25,

that slide in longitudinal slots in the front It will thus be seen that by of motion to the said cross-bar. The arms 25 of the latter are provided with thumb-screws 28, bearing against washers 29, that abut upon the outer sides of the front and rear side pieces 21 and 22, thus enabling the said cross-piece to be held and retained very securely at any position to which it may be ad justed.

For the adjustment of the cross-bar 24: I provide a screw-threaded rod 30, journaled in one of the end pieces 20 of the frame and secured against longitudinal movement with relation to said end piece by means of collars 31. The screw-threaded end of the rod 30 extends through an opening 32 in the crossbar 24. and engages a threaded opening in a nut or plate 33, securely attached to the said cross-bar. It will be seen that by operating the screw-threaded rod by means of a handle 34 at the outer end of the latter the cross-bar 24 is capable of being moved transversely in the frame 5 within the limit of the length of the mortises 26 and the grooves 27.

The front bar 21 and the cross-bars 23 and 24. constitute the punching-bars of the device. Each of said bars is provided at its lower edge with an L-shaped plate 35, suitably secured thereto and having perforations for the reception of the headed needles orpunches 36, whicharesupportedbycountersinks in the upper sides of the exposed portions of the plates 35. The punching-bars are provided with recesses 37, in which cleats 38 are secured by means of thumb-screws 39. These cleats bear against the upper ends or heads of the needles 40, and thereby secure the said needles in operative position.

The bed of the machine supports the permanent die-plates -11, which are disposed underneath the front bar 21 and the permanent crossbar 23. The bed is also provided direetly underneath the perforations 42 in said die-plates wit-h slots 43 for the escape of the material punched out. Directly above the die plates 41 are supported the clearingplates 44, which are elevated at a suitable distance above the said die-plates by means of interposed washer-plates 45 or in any other suitable manner to admit of the insertion between said dieplates and clearing-plates of as many sheets of paper as it may be desired to perforate at one operation. These parts may be constructed and connected together in any suitable well-known manner.

The movable cross-bar 24, which also constitutesa punching-bar on account of its adjustability, requires to be provided with a separate die-plate and clearing-plate, which shall be movable in perfect unison therewith and which in addition requires to be well braced and supported. The support is provided by a pair of cross-bars 45, connecting the uprights 1 l and themselves supported upon brackets 46, firmly bolted or otherwise secured to said uprights. The die-plate 47 of the adjustable punching-bar is supported upon a pair of cross-bars 4S, themselves c011- neeted by said die-plate, which is firmly secured thereto, although additional means may be provided for securely connecting the said cross-bars. The clearing-plate 49 is supported upon and suitably spaced from the said die-plate. The cross-bars 48 rest and are slidably supported upon the cross-bars 45 and are preferably provided at their front ends with tongues 50, sliding in grooves 51 in the front part of the bed of machine, thereby steadying their movement. The clearingplate is provided in its upper side with recesses 52 to receive the points of rods 53, eX tending vertically through the cross-bar 2e and serving in part to connect the said slidable cross-bar with the slidable mechanism arranged underneath the same. Additional connecting means is provided bya verticallydisposed bolt 54, the lower end of which is secured in the clearing-plate 49, with which it is connected by a jam-nut 55. The upper end of said bolt extends through a slot 56 in a cross bar or brace 57, which connects the supports 4 at the front side of the frame of the machine, the said bolt 54 being capable of being firmly secured with relation to said cross-bar by means of nuts 58, hearing against the upper and under sides of the latter. To further secure the movable punching 1116011 anism with relation to the bed of the machine, I provide a headed bolt 59, extending through the clearing-plate 49, die-plate 4.7, and the washer 60, interposed between said plates, and through a slot 61 in the bed-plate of the machine, a thumb-nut (32 bearing against the under side of the said bed-plate to secure the parts in any position to which they may be adjusted.

The bed of the machine is provided with a slot or opening 623 to admit of the adjustment of the movable punching-bar 24 and its related parts.

The front end of the clearing-plate li) is supported upon a recessed portion O l of the front clearing-plate 44, a portion of the said clearing-plate 49 being extended laterally, as shown, so as to give it additional support.

Gage-bars 65 are provided slidable through suitable openings in brackets 66 upon the rear part of the frame of the machine, said gagebars being provided with slots (57, through which thumb-screws 68 extend into the bed of the machine for the adjustment and securetnent of said gage-bars. The latter are provided at their front ends with transverse gages 69 and 70, which may thusbe adjusted when desired. The gage 70, which is the one adjacent to the movable punching-bar 24-, is connected adjustably with its supporting-bar 65 by means of .a thumb-screw 71, extending through a slot 72 in the said gage 70, which is thus capable of being adjusted laterally with relation to its supporting-bar when such adjustment shall be necessitated by the adjustment of the movable punching mechanism.

The front of the machine is provided with a table 73, upon which the work may be supported.

From the foregoing description, and especially by reference to Fig. 4 of the drawings, it will be seen that the machine constructed as herein described is capable of forming three rows of perforations, one row being formed by the needles connected with the front punching-bar and the two additional rows beingformed at right angles to the first one by the needles connected with the crossbars 23 and 24. The distance between the latter rows of perforations may be varied to any desired extent within the limits of the capacity of the machine, and thus by a single operation one or more sheets inserted between the die-plates and the clearing-plates may be punctured or perforated in the manner outlined in Fig. 4, the distance between the two parallel rows of perforations being variable at will. When it is considered that heretofore it has been customary to form these perforations a single row at a time, the value of this invention as a time-saver will be readily understood and appreciated.

The capacity of the machine, as will be readily understood, may be increased by simply increasing the size and duplicating orpluralizing the cross-bars 23 and 24. This may be found necessary for commercial work requiring more than two rows of parallel perf0ra tions; but such machine of increased capacity may be readily constructed by those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains without the necessity of further description. It will also be understood that the construction of this improved perforating-machine may be varied with regard to the details thereof, and I therefore do not limit myself to the precise construction and arrangement of details herein set forth, but reserve the right to any changes, modifications, and alterations which may be resorted to without sacrificing the utility or departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame having a plurality of punching-bars, one of said punching-bars constituting the front of the frame, and another being disposed at right angles to and securely connecting the front and rear sides of said frame.

2. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame having a plurality of punching-bars, one of said punching-bars constituting the front of the frame and another disposed between, at right angles to and transversely movable with relation to the front and rear sides of said frame.

3. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame having a plurality of punching-bars, one of which constitutes the front of said frame, the remainder of said punching-bars being disposed between the front and rear bars of said frame and at right angles to said front and rear sides, and one of said intermediate punching bars being laterally movable with relation to the frame.

4. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame having a plurality of-punchthe adjustable punching-bar, and a bed having permanent rigid supports for said die and clearing plates.

'7. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable rectangular frame having punchingbars permanently disposed at right angles to each other, in combination with a punchingbar slidably disposed in said frame, parallel to one of the permanent punching-bars, movably-disposed die and clearing plates, connecting means between said die and clearing plates and the slidable punching-bar to cause them to move in unison, adjusting means, and means for securing the movable punching-bar and the die and clearing plates relating thereto at any point of adjustment in operative position.

8. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame, a punching-bar slidably disposed therein, a die-plate and a clearing-plate suitably spaced and connected and disposed slidably underneath said punching-bar, said clearing-plate being provided with recesses in its upper side, and connecting-rods movably disposed in vertical openings in the punching-bar and engaging the recesses in the upper sideof the clearing-plate.

9. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame, a punching-bar slidably disposed therein, a die-plate and a clearing-plate suitably spaced and connected and disposed slidably underneath said punchingbar, a screw-threaded rod having rigid connection by means of a jam-nut with the upper side of the clearing-plate, a horizontal, verticallyslotted bar. supported independently of the verticallymovable frame to receive the screwthreaded rod which extends through the slot therein, and means for making the said rod securewith relation to said bar.

10. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame carrying stationary and movable perforating means, in combination with a bed, die-plates and clearing-plates supported permanently upon said bed in proper relation to the stationary perforating means supported by the frame, and die and clearing plates supported slidably in the bed of the machine and connected to move in unison with the movable perforating means.

11. In a perforating-machine, a verticallymovable frame, a punching-bar transversely slidable in said frame and having arms extending into slots in the front and rear sides of said frame, thumb-screws engaging said arms and bearing against the frame-bars to secure the punching-bar at its point of adjustment, and cleats extending laterally from the said punching-bar and engaging grooves in the inner sides of the front and rear sides of the frame.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as I 5 my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN W. HEDGEPETH.

Witnesses:

J. W. KIRKPATRICK, M. W. SAVAGE. 

